Gold On Verge Of $1300 After North Korea Threats

After touching a more than two-month high at US$1,291.86, spot gold last added 0.2 per cent to US$1,288.81 an ounce.

"While not necessary unexpected - as the United States had to respond to threats made by North Korea that they will fire rockets due to land just off the coast of Guam soon - new comments by Trump propelled stocks lower".

He goes on to say: "In all likelihood the North Korea problem will persist for years to come, with the U.S, and increasingly China, attempting to contain and restrain Kim Jong-un". "The U.S. president at a [golf] links again let out a load of nonsense about 'fire and fury, ' failing to grasp the on-going grave situation".

Global political tensions have seen investors sell off shares as they flee to less risky assets such as the yen and the Swiss franc. Prices earlier rose to $1,282.40 an ounce, the highest since June 14.

OIL: Benchmark U.S. crude lost 24 cents to $48.37 per barrel on the on the New York Mercantile Exchange while Brent crude, used to price global oils, declined 20 cents to $51.70 per barrel in London.

The U.S. consumer-price index, set for release before Wall Street opens, will be closely monitored by investors for clues on inflation and the Fed's next move, said Mr. Kamal.

The 30-year bond last /32 in price to yield 2.7933 percent, from 2.794 percent late on Thursday. With the sell-off on the day, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 fell to their lowest closing levels in a month.

A Reuters Datastream index of more than 7,000 stocks across the globe saw its market capitalization drop from a record high $61.36 trillion on Monday to $60.43 trillion at the close on Thursday. The Nasdaq lost 135 points, or 2.1 percent, to 6,216.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 share index.N225 closed down 1.3 percent at its lowest since June 1 as the strong yen hit exporters, while South Korea's KOSPI index.KS11 fell 1.1 percent to seven-week lows. The dollar index, which measures its strength against a basket of currencies, was roughly flat at 93.420.

Away from the geopolitical drama, USA inflation data is due at 1330 GMT.

Oil prices rose before a report expected to show USA crude stocks fell for a sixth week. In a note to investors, Paul Christopher, head global market strategist, and Tracie McMillion, head of global asset allocation, suggest, "the threat of a nuclear weapon is certainly more serious than previous threats, but that threat also may increase the probability of a diplomatic solution". It was on course for an over 5 percent weekly rise, its highest such gain since July 2016.

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